The short answer
Friends the Restaurant: what visitors should know first
Good for a relaxed, slightly higher-priced lunch or dinner with a purpose. It is vegetarian friendly rather than meat free, so choose from the vegetarian dishes and confirm hours and prices before going.
Useful facts
Friends the Restaurant facts at a glance
- Location
- 215 Street 13, Phnom Penh
- Dining style
- Social-enterprise training restaurant; tapas
- Price signal
- Upmarket compared with street food; check menu
- Signature order
- Try: sundried tomato hummus on wontons, per a travel blog
- Good for
- A purposeful, relaxed lunch
Why it matters
Why Friends the Restaurant is worth your time
Eating here does more than feed a family. The two sources describe a training venue where young people learn hospitality skills, so the meal supports a local programme, which many travellers value when choosing among Phnom Penh's many cafes.
For older relatives the tapas format is gentle: small plates can be ordered one at a time, and nobody has to finish a large main. The cost sits above a street meal, which is the main trade-off. Read the menu first, pick dishes you recognise, and treat the blog's dish names as examples rather than a promise.
Highlights
What not to miss
- 01
Training restaurant
Both sources describe it as a social enterprise for young people.
- 02
Tapas format
Small plates make it easy to share and to order lightly.
- 03
Gift shop
The guide notes a shop next door.
Plan your visit
How to experience it
A vegetarian guide lists Friends at 215 Street 13 as a training restaurant run as a social enterprise, serving vegetarian Western and Asian tapas and full courses, with a gift shop next door. A vegetarian travel blog describes it as an upmarket training restaurant for former street children, and names tapas such as penne with cashew nut, chilli and basil pesto, sundried tomato hummus on wontons, and courgette and cheddar fritters.
That mix suits a table of different tastes: order several small plates and share them. The dishes named use cheese, so they are vegetarian, not vegan, and the menu may change since the blog is not recent.
The restaurant is listed as vegetarian friendly, not fully vegetarian, so ask about meat in any dish and about egg, onion and garlic. Confirm opening hours on a current listing, because the sources do not date their information.
Plan with confidence
Small checks that make a better meal.
- Confirm hours and prices before going
- Ask about meat, egg, onion and garlic
- Call ahead for a group
- Check the dish names, which may have changed
Know before you go
Timing, access and comfort
- Area
- 215 Street 13, near the riverside
- Time needed
- 1 to 1.5 hours
- Best time
- Lunch or early dinner
- Walking level
- Easy
- Senior comfort
- Street 13 is a flat city street near the riverside, so there is little walking. We could not verify steps, seating or toilets; phone ahead for accessibility.
- Tickets and access
- Booking is not required by anything we saw, but for dinner or a group call ahead; the guide lists daily hours from 11am to 11pm, so confirm them.
Best for
Plan it with
Plan the practical part
Hotels near Friends the Restaurant
Staying close keeps journeys short — useful for early starts and for anyone who tires quickly.
Affiliate link — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices are live on the partner site.
Travelling with parents?
Street 13 is a flat city street near the riverside, so there is little walking. We could not verify steps, seating or toilets; phone ahead for accessibility.
Raahzo can arrange an arrival or day companion who handles tickets, queues and pacing, and keeps the family updated.
See concierge supportFAQs
Is Friends vegetarian?
The guide lists it as vegetarian friendly, not meat free.
Is it vegan?
No evidence of that; several named dishes use cheese.
Where is it?
The guide gives 215 Street 13.
Sources and further reading
- Move to Cambodia: Phnom Penh vegetarian and vegan restaurants
- Never Ending Voyage: Vegetarian Survival Guide to Cambodia
Timings, fees and access rules change. Recheck with the official source before you travel.
